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Edward T. Creagan, M.D.
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Edward T. Creagan, M.D.
Edward T. Creagan, M.D.
"The magic of the electronic village is transforming health information. The mouse and keyboard have extended the stethoscope to the 500 million people now online." - Dr. Edward Creagan
The power of the medium inspires Dr. Edward Creagan as he searches for ways to share Mayo Clinic's vast resources with the general public.
Dr. Creagan, a Newark, N.J., native, is board certified in internal medicine, medical oncology, and hospice medicine and palliative care. He has been with Mayo Clinic since 1973 and in 1999 was president of the staff of Mayo Clinic. Dr. Creagan, a professor of medical oncology at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, was honored in 1995 with the John and Roma Rouse Professor of Humanism in Medicine Award and in 1992 with the Distinguished Mayo Clinician Award, Mayo's highest recognition. He has been recognized with the American Cancer Society Professorship of Clinical Oncology.
He describes his areas of special interest as "wellness as a bio-psycho-social-spiritual-financial model" and fitness, mind-body connection, aging and burnout.
Dr. Creagan has been an associate medical editor with Mayo Clinic's Web sites and has edited publications and CD-ROMs and reviewed articles.
"We the team of (the Web site) provide reliable, easy-to-understand health and wellness information so that each of us can have productive, meaningful lives," he says.
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Stress blog
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Jan. 6, 2009
Share what you learn with others
By Edward T. Creagan, M.D.
Dear friends, colleagues, and fellow travelers:
Let me take this opportunity from all of us to wish each of you and your loved ones a New Year filled with peace, health, prosperity, and serenity.
In revisiting some of your insightful comments concerning the end result from workshops, seminars, and related activities, I certainly agree that many of these programs are interesting and provocative, but within a few days or weeks at the most, most of us are hard pressed to remember any tangible, practical, useful information.
My thinking on this issue, and perhaps I am wrong, goes something like this: A famous American poet made the comment that time is the only currency that we have. We must use it wisely, otherwise it is completely wasted. If I sit through a multi-day session and do not use the information shared with me in a practical way, I have essentially wasted my time, which is irretrievable, and obviously money and resources. That just does not seem right.
Therefore, when I do attend a workshop, my focus is specific. How will I practically use the information; what is the timetable for me to employ what I have learned; and how can I share this information with others?
For example, several months ago I attended a workshop on effective presentation skills. It was powerful and motivating. One of my reasons for taking the program was to bring this information back to our medical students so that they could learn to avoid the many pitfalls from the podium and become more effective speakers.
In other words, the "hook" was for me to share what I have learned with others and not simply keep it to myself.
Can any of you relate to this phenomenon? It sure seems to me that if we have a gift and do not share it, in some way that is not the right thing to do. And sharing is a way you can relieve stress.
6 comments posted
January 15, 2009 8:01 p.m.
I agree that sharing can really help relieve stress. Sometimes you share stress, sometimes you share succes. I personally made a discovery about 2 years ago that changing my focus from 'what I will accomplish one day' to 'what I can accomplish today' has really helped me live each day to the fullest. I look for opportunities to improve circumstances for myself and others. Since I found it so helpful for myself, I thought others may benefit from my changed perspective and, with the help of a life-long friend, started a website dedicated to the philosophy of "Living each day as though it is your first." If interested in reading more about Day1, please feel free to visit: www.LiveDay1.com
- B McD
January 8, 2009 4:59 p.m.
On the topic of stress, I want to share with others an amazing discovery I have found to help me deal with stress. My wife recently bought me a Nirvana Swing Chair for Christmas, and the gentle swinging motion is amazing and has really helped me reduce stress. For anyone that is interested, she found it at www.SwingChairStore.com. Here's to your health! - Marvin
- Marvin
January 8, 2009 12:19 p.m.
xhgcbh My heart goes out to Martha and her husband in caring for children with autism at an age where they probably need help themselves. Is there a program through medicare where they can get help for themselves in home which might free them of some of the care taking of their parents and themselves. This might help them with the energy they need to deal with the children. Also is there an in home program to help them with the boys? I had been feeling a little sorry for myself as I take care of my 88 year old mother who is bed ridden in my home. I have cared for her for the past 9 years on my own. I know it is too expensive for private nurses and we all need our money in this economy. Have they checked in programs available through the city they live in? My prayers go out to them.
- Marlen Escoboza
January 7, 2009 3:40 p.m.
I don't know that this is relevent to your reason for attending various presentations, but it definitely has to do with stress. I have noticed a large number of articles on the stress associated with caring for a loved one with dementia. I understand this because of caring for both my mother and mother in law with this disease. Why do I not see any articles about being senior citizens caring for one (or in our case twin) autistic grandchildren? I am 70, my husband is 78. Our grandchildren are now 12 and are larger and much stronger than I. Their developmental pediatrician does not want to see them anymore because3 he say there is nothing left to do but put them in an institution. We cannot bring ourselves to do tht because there are literally no institutions available for young autistics. Nursing homes can't handle them, they are too low-functioning for group homes, mental hospitals all seem to be "full." The last time one of them attacked and injured me, the intake nurse at a mental hospital I called told me to call the police. What would they do? Put a 12 year old child in a cell with a child molester? Please, can you consider helping us and others with this terrible problem? I truly believe we are suffering as deeply as those caring for dementia patients--and surely we are not the only ones. My health id deteriorating largely because of the physical and mental torture of having these boys in our home for the past eight years. Thank you, Martha
- Martha
January 6, 2009 7:07 p.m.
Dear Dr. C... yes, and yet there are so many people just too willing to share, that most of us simply become "allergic" to someone passing on an (usually un-asked for) information. For some reason there is much more of us wanting to "share information" than those of us willing to listen or even consider it... we simply prefer to teach than to learn...
- Liz
January 6, 2009 10:12 a.m.
I can relate to that absolutely! In fact it's something we very much encourge in the people we train (http://www.curved-vision.co.uk) because without something clear and concrete to want to tell people about, all too often it ends up that would-be public speakers become bad public speakers... people who speak for the sake of hearing their own voice and the glory of it.... And that's not the kind of people we want to be working with! Simon
- Simon - a presentation skills trainer in the UK
6 comments posted